Moving forward I will be blogging in a different place and invite you to follow and interact with me there.

https://leadershipransom.blogspot.com/

I plan to be more consistent in getting out content and ideas to provoke thoughtful reflection and respectful dialogue among Christ-followers with a primary focus toward nurturing leaders to lead well for Christ's glory.  So, please join me on the Leadership Ransom blog.

Are You Setting Yourself Up to Fail in 2017?

We’ve all witnessed the party host, totally transfixed on making every detail of the event perfect, and of course, having to do everything by herself.  Then, something crashes because it was just too big of a load.  Or, perhaps the evening survived any great mishap, but she and her guests could not enjoy the event due to the tension.  Similar stories of lone ranger pride play out all the time, in the work place, at school and church events, on sports teams, when raising children, etc.

So it’s always a glorious day when we see someone stop trying to take on big jobs by himself, but instead choosing to share the burden.  We see smiles and even laughter again.  We see deep friendships forming because of the teamwork and communication happening. We also see people who had been experiencing fear, anxiety, loneliness, and anger, suddenly at peace with life.

The Bible says in many places that there is great value in a team.  Furthermore, God identifies and even ordains 3 specific teams:

1)  The first is the team of husband/wife.  If you are married God intended for you to do most things in life as a team and to enjoy each other in the process.   

2) The second team is the church.  The Bible didn’t say that church is a place where you go, it said church is a team of people who serve each other and benefit greatly by gathering together often.  

3) The third team is one you might have guessed.  You and God are a team if you believe in the death and resurrection of His Son to forgive your sins.  The Bible says that God gave you His Holy Spirit inside of you at the time of your saving faith, which means he is on your team and will guide and strengthen you.

So, here’s a great way to fail miserably at life in 2017.  Ignore the incredible teammates you have who want to help you succeed.  Don’t open up to your spouse or your friends from your church.  Don’t seek guidance from your pastor or Godly mentor.  Above all, stay away from church gatherings as much as possible and remember never to pray.  

Talking about sex

I have one teenage son right now and after I blink a few more times I'll have 4 teens in the home.  

This fact recently led me to wonder what it must feel like for a teen boy to grow in such a super-sexualized culture.  Realize that Tammy and I are on the protective end of the spectrum in comparison with most families we know, and yet we know our kids are still being exposed to more sexual content than we probably were at their age.

Parenting through this particular issue of life will be a challenging experience but we know that God is going to give us wisdom through His Word and through friends.  If you have found a resource to be helpful to you in raising your children I invite you to please share it on Building Strong Homes, FB page. 

I recently posted an article there on the 5 Ingredients to a Sexually Fulfilled Marriage.  Having a strong marriage requires a healthy sex life.  In the right time we need to share this biblical principle with our kids...God invented sex for stronger marriages!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Building-Strong-Homes/855953031089727

What's more important, what God is doing in me or what I'm doing for God?

Often this question comes up only because we're too wrapped up in the tyranny of "doing for God" (pursuing our mission) at the cost of spending quiet time with Him (remembering our identity.)  A religiously busy life works to pull us away from quiet times of introspection and meditation ultimately leading us to neglect our spiritual and emotional well-being.  In addition to disconnecting us from God, this pattern if unchecked will also eventually bring other important relationships to ruin.   

Yet, the answer isn't what some rush to embrace by choosing to swing the pendulum in the opposite direction until all of life is about an inward spiritual focus.  Discipleship isn't exclusively about internal behaviors, decisions, attitudes, and values.  Discipleship requires obedience to the voice of Jesus.  So, neglecting God's calling to serve is just as sinful as ignoring his invitations to communion.  

It's important to remember that our identity is as children of God only because of His grace and that our mission/calling is separate but equally important.  Who we are isn't defined by what we do, but what we do does flow out of who we are.  Just like Israel in the Old Covenant, the church is a nation called to be God's chosen and holy people, separating themselves from the peoples around them (identity).  However, we also were given an assignment (mission.)  Our assignment isn't to find and conquer a promised land, but instead we're to use our gifts to help others know and follow Jesus.

In 2015 let's commit to spend quiet time with God each day reconnecting with the truth of our identity as forgiven and loved children of God.  Then, as God seems to be guiding you can choose to lead a ministry or program or some other type of God-given initiative that is seeking to make disciples, or you can employ your gifts on the team of a spiritual leader who is serious about the Christian mission.

1 Peter 2:9, 10
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Romans 13:1 says, "let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established.  The authorities that exist have been established by God. "


The attainment of an orderly family, church, or community is realized only when the people submit to authority and when authority loves those whom they lead.  When one or both of these principles break down, so does order and peacefulness.


What will you do to affirm the authority of the policemen in your community?


In the areas of life where your role is "leader," what will you do to better love those whom you lead?

Wow...a believer who actually believes

In our family devotion time the past couple days we’ve focused on the conversation between David and Saul when David is pleading to go out and fight against Goliath.  Specifically we focused on 1 Samuel 17:34-37.

Since Saul wasn’t willing to carry the banner of the One True God, he made it his mission to find someone else he could talk into fighting Goliath.  

When David showed up, Saul suddenly found himself face to face with a man he couldn’t talk out of fighting Goliath.  It is clear in this story that the difference between the confidence of David and of every other man in Israel was huge.  

What made the difference?

When Saul tried to talk David out of the fight, David’s response was to relate how God helped him overcome bears and lions, and so, certainly God would be with him against an enemy who wasn’t simply attacking some sheep, but God's name and the very people of God.

Confidence like David's comes from our faith memory that causes us to dwell in our past divine deliverances while realizing that God wants us to continue living forward, running straight into new and unexpected enemies that will challenge our faith in Him.  

What adversity are you facing today?  How has God shown Himself to be faithful in your previous trials?  Remembering his grace and deliverance from the past will allow you to move forward into an uncertain and sometimes scary future, especially if you are carrying the banner of the one true God.

Thankful for Eternal Life

There are many things we want to be certain about.  We want to be sure that:
* there's enough money in the bank to cover expenses
* the tires are in good condition before a big trip
* our kids are getting a good education
* I have job security
* my spouse loves me
* our doors are locked at night
* my loved ones have what they need
* I have time for fun and recreation
* I can afford to retire some day
* We have medical insurance
* I have food and shelter
* Etc.

However, of all the things in our life that we should be trying to lock down, so that we have total certainty, the most important thing to be sure about is our eternal future.  This past Sunday I shared with my church what the Bible says about eternal life.  For those who missed it let me share with you what just might prove to be the most important bit of information anyone ever told you.

Truth #1 - It is possible to know 100% for sure that when this life comes to an end you will be in heaven with Jesus for eternity.  

Truth #2 - If you're "pretty sure," "not sure," or "hoping" that you'll be in heaven one day, then chances are you're banking on the wrong thing to get you there.  The reason for this is because when we understand and believe what the Bible says about eternal life there is no longer any doubt.  Doubt about eternal life in heaven happens when we are banking on our own good behavior to buy us a spot in heaven.  We hope that we've been good enough or that we haven't done anything too bad or that our good decisions will outweigh the bad decisions.  So, we live with doubt because we're not ever quite sure if we've been good enough to earn God's forgiveness and acceptance.

Truth #3 - The Bible says that neither you nor anybody else, even the most religious person you can think of, has done enough good things to earn heaven.  The saints, the prophets, the disciples, pastors, missionaries, monks, nuns, priests, no person other than Jesus has lived a perfect life.  Even if I was able to be perfect from this day forward there's no solution for my past sins and say I only committed 10 sins a day?  That's still 3,650 sins per year.  No matter how you cut it we're all in trouble.

Truth #4 - Although we could never do enough Jesus did do enough on our behalf.  I can't do enough good things to erase my mistakes and sins but Jesus paid the price of my debt to God on the cross.  The Bible is very clear that he paid for all my sins in full.

Truth #5 - If I believe Jesus did all the work necessary to get me to heaven and that his sacrifice was enough to cover all my sins then I won't have any doubts whatsoever about going to heaven.  Doubt surfaces when I trust myself to get to heaven and doubts disappear when I trust Jesus as my Savior.

There are many verses in the Bible that will reassure you about truth #5.  Read: John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8,9, 1John 5:11-13 and tell Jesus that you trust that his death and resurrection was enough to secure your eternity in heaven.  God's not impressed by your good deeds.  He's only pleased when you choose to trust him, believing that you have eternal life given to you as a gift, thanks to Jesus' sacrifice.

Thank you God for assurance of eternal life...not because I deserve it but because you gave it to me as a gift many years ago when I trusted you as my Savior.